Fertility assessment using Functional Medicine

Fertility assessment using Functional Medicine

Wanting to have a baby but facing a negative pregnancy test month after month can be heartbreaking. Many women will seek out medical help, only to be told to relax, prescribed medications like Clomid, or steered towards medical interventions like intrauterine insemination (IUI) or in-vitro fertilization (IVF).

The problem with this approach is that it’s a “one-size-fits-all” approach to fertility that doesn’t take individuals into account or look for the root cause of infertility. Often, the standard practice focuses primarily on the woman’s reproductive system and doesn’t even consider that the difficulty conceiving may have everything to do with the man’s sperm quality, or that the reproductive system isn’t truly the root cause.

A Fertility assessment using Functional Medicine takes a different, holistic approach to fertility. It assesses and treats the whole body – his and hers – because you’re both more than your reproductive parts.

When you schedule a Fertility assessment using Functional Medicine with me, you can expect so much more than a quick appointment or cookie-cutter treatment. 

Comprehensive Testing Leads to Targeted Treatment

Traditional methods rely on a treatment approach that does the bare minimum allowed by insurance and typically sends everyone down the same treatment path. And those standard lab tests might not be enough to determine what is impairing your fertility. This is just how our healthcare system is set up, unfortunately.  

Fertility assessment using Functional Medicine includes a thorough evaluation of your medical and fertility history, paying special attention to menstrual history. We’ll also talk about lifestyle and environmental factors that might be affecting your fertility. Then, comprehensive lab tests will rule out infection, deficiencies, and inflammatory processes, and hormone testing to verify what is, or is not, in balance. 

Your lab results, history, and results of any other assessments help me determine the possible genetic potential that can affect how your body deals with hormones. I’ll use what I’ve learned about you to develop individualized recommendations to help balance your system with diet, lifestyle changes, and supplements. Most importantly, we’ll talk about the results, what they mean, what you can do to support your fertility, and what your next steps should be. You’ll walk out of my office with a plan to attain your best health. 

Some of my recommended therapies may include acupuncture, herbs, supplements, lifestyle changes, diet recommendations, self-care plans, therapeutic (yoni) steams. 

You Deserve Customized Recommendations  

When you’re trying to get pregnant, everyone seems to have diet and supplement recommendations, from your family to strangers in the supermarket! You may get a recommendation for prenatal vitamins with folic acid at your doctor’s office, and while that is usually solid general advice, it doesn’t address your unique needs or possible genetic issues with folic acid. It doesn’t tell you what you should focus on in your diet and lifestyle to most help your fertility.

How do you know what your body needs and which supplements are best for you? There are so many supplement companies these days that include detrimental fillers in their formulations. The vitamins themselves may be of such low quality that you’re almost better off taking nothing than what they offer. 

Because you are unique, my recommendations will be specific to your lab results and personal needs. For example, if your blood work showed elevated inflammatory markers, you’d need to be on a diet that reduces those. If chronic stress is affecting your ability to make the hormones that you need for fertility, supplements and lifestyle recommendations will be made for this.

A Whole-Person Approach – For Both of You

Fertility treatments often focus almost entirely on the woman. Her partner may have a sperm analysis but may be told his sperm is fine even though there are many steps he could take to help his sperm motility, lower his morphology, and improve his sperm volume. Standard fertility treatment may move you towards IVF instead of taking that sperm analysis a step further. 

Functional medicine focuses on the health of both of you. A woman’s partner deserves an equally thorough assessment as hers! It does take two to make a baby, after all. 

For your best results, he should have comprehensive testing, too, including sperm analysis, blood labs, and hormone testing. With his results in hand, I can give him the best recommendations to help his hormone levels, vitality, and wellbeing, and most importantly – improve his sperm quality and fertility.

Certain dietary habits and supplements, and lifestyle changes can really help support his half of the puzzle. But only after a comprehensive assessment to understand why the sperm is not as fertile as it could be. 

Understanding Why Pregnancy Isn’t Happening is the First Step

When you’re told that your best options are IUI or IVF, you may end up spending a lot of time and money attempting to get pregnant, with no understanding of why pregnancy isn’t occurring or viable.  

My approach, a functional, whole-person approach for both you and your partner, means looking at all the facts before making treatment recommendations. Otherwise, it’s just guesswork. We can only address the problems when we know what they are. I want to help you find the right answers.

Does Insurance Cover Fertility assessment using Functional Medicine?

Insurance typically doesn’t cover a Fertility assessment using Functional Medicine or lab fees. But, getting on the right track to support your fertility without going through many rounds of IUI and, ultimately, IVF – might just seem priceless. 

Let’s Schedule Your Fertility assessment using Functional Medicine

If you’re struggling with fertility issues with no identifiable medical cause, where you may have endometriosis or an irregular period where ovulation is unpredictable, a Fertility assessment using Functional Medicine can help you find answers and send you down a more fertile path.

My mission is to coach you and your partner toward your ultimate goal of having a baby. I’m not talking about a one-time visit and then sending you on your way to figure things out on your own. This is about finding answers, forming solutions together, and ensuring that you understand and are comfortable with the next steps. I’ll be there to help with any questions or struggles you may have on your fertility journey. 

Call (760) 419-6863 for a complimentary 20-minute consultation today and we can get you started.

February-March 2022 special – Save $75

If you’re ready to dive deeper to understand what’s going on with your fertility, don’t miss our February special for the Fertility assessment using Functional Medicine (done in person or through a telehealth meeting). The regular price is $375, but until March 20th, it’s only $300. You can purchase your Fertility assessment using Functional Medicine below.

About Shelly Tompkins

Shelly Tompkins, L.Ac, C.F.M.P is a renowned women’s health, fertility & wellness expert and licensed acupuncturist, herbalist and functional medicine practitioner in private practice in San Diego, CA. She has extensive training and experience and has been in private practice for 35+ years and also taught at Pacific College of Oriental Medicine for 24 of those years. Shelly has worked with thousands of women, from puberty through senior years, to find answers and solutions to their overall health and hormone imbalances and more.

Her practice includes the use of laboratory testing to be able to find the answers to many of the health issues experienced in women and men. Through these labs, health history, and other tests, the assessments not only give answers, but ways to treat the body as a whole, so it works in its best capacity for healing.

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